head to head · open source
n8n vs open-claude-cowork
n8n has 209,375 GitHub stars, 61,361 forks, 1,143 open issues and last shipped yesterday. open-claude-cowork has 4,307 stars, 702 forks, 15 open issues and last shipped 5 months ago. n8n leads on adoption by 4,761% (209,375 vs 4,307 stars). n8n is written in TypeScript under a custom or non-standard licence; open-claude-cowork is written in JavaScript under MIT. n8n has attracted 29% as many forks as stars, open-claude-cowork 16%. n8n was the more recently maintained of the two, and both are self-hostable with no licence fee.
Two open source projects, one decision. Both are free and self-hostable — the differences are community size, license terms, language stack and release pace.
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Side by side
| n8n | open-claude-cowork | |
|---|---|---|
| GitHub stars | ★ 209K | ★ 4.3K |
| License | Custom / other | MIT |
| Written in | TypeScript | JavaScript |
| Last push | 2026-11-02 | 2026-05-23 |
| Forks | ⑂ 61K | ⑂ 702 |
| Self-hosting | Yes | Yes |
| Data ownership | Your server | Your server |
pick n8n if
- You weight community size — 209K stars and counting
- You want the Custom / other license terms
- Your stack matches TypeScript
- You value the larger contributor base for long-term maintenance
pick open-claude-cowork if
- You want the open-claude-cowork feature set and don't need the biggest community
- You prefer the MIT license terms
- Your stack matches JavaScript
- You evaluated both and open-claude-cowork fits your workflow better
About n8n
n8n – The Platform for AI Agents and Workflow Automation Fair code platform to build and deploy AI agents and workflows. Combine a visual canvas with custom code, run it self hosted or in the cloud, and connect to 1500+ integrations. AI automation you can trust with real work, from prototype to production. Key Capabilities AI Native Automation Platform : Build and operationalize AI workflows and multi step agents using your own data, models, and tools Model Flexibility, No Lock In : Connect to OpenAI, Anthropic, Google, or open source models and switch providers without changing your architecture From Prototype…
About open-claude-cowork
Open Claude Cowork An open source desktop chat application powered by Claude Agent SDK and Composio Tool Router. Automate your work end to end across desktop and all your work apps in one place. Get your free API key to get started → Pst. hey, you, join our stargazers :) What's Inside This repo includes two powerful AI tools: Both include 500+ app integrations via Composio (Gmail, Slack, GitHub, Google Drive, and more). Quick Start Open Claude Cowork Then run in two terminals: 🦑 Secure Clawdbot Select "Terminal chat" to test, or "Start gateway" to connect WhatsApp/Telegram/Signal/iMessage. See Secure Clawdbot…
read the full open-claude-cowork overview →
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Frequently asked questions
Is n8n or open-claude-cowork more popular?
n8n has 209,375 GitHub stars and open-claude-cowork has 4,307. n8n has the larger community by that measure.
Are n8n and open-claude-cowork free?
Both are open source. n8n has no licence declared in this registry, and open-claude-cowork is licensed under MIT. Both are free to self-host.
What is the difference between n8n and open-claude-cowork?
n8n is written in TypeScript and open-claude-cowork in JavaScript. The practical differences are community size, licence terms, language stack and release cadence — all compared in the table above.
Which should I choose, n8n or open-claude-cowork?
Choose n8n if you want the larger community (209,375 stars) or its Custom / other licence terms. Choose open-claude-cowork if its feature set, stack or MIT licence fits better. Both are self-hostable.